[child-rights] African governments must respect children's rights

News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty International
AI INDEX: AFR 01/005/2003     16 June 2003

On the Day of the African Child, Amnesty International is calling on 
African governments to ratify the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare 
of the Child*, where they have not done so already, and for all governments 
to rapidly put into practice the terms of the Charter.

Everyday, African children continue to be used as soldiers, often to fight 
on the front line, or as porters, messengers, guards, or cooks. Girls are 
used as sexual slaves or are given a gun and sent into combat. Millions of 
other children across Africa suffer daily violations of their rights to 
food, shelter, health and education.

"Africa's future is blighted by the denial of children's rights and African 
governments have an obligation to put an end to this," Amnesty 
International said.

* Burundi, Central African Republic, the Comoros, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic 
Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Sao Tome and 
Principe and Sudan have yet to sign the African Charter on the Rights and 
Welfare of the Child. The Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Gabon, Ghana, 
Liberia, Namibia, Somalia, Swaziland, Tanzania and Zambia have signed, but 
not yet ratified the Charter.


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For more information on child soldiers please visit 
http://amnesty-news.c.tclk.net/maabaLEaaYDqqbdTYAHb/

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